Yesterday the U.S. Senate passed the third coronavirus stimulus package, via H.R. 748 (the final text is here). The U.S. House is expected to act on the bill tomorrow. As passed by the Senate, it includes $150.0 billion for a relief fund for state, local, and tribal governments (Sec. 5001). (This is the amount that the National Governors Association requested.)

Of the $150.0 billion, $8.0 billion would be reserved for tribal governments and $3.0 billion would be reserved for DC, Puerto Rico, and other territories. Each state would receive at least $1.25 billion. The remaining $76.5 billion would be split among the states according to population. Jared Walczak of the Tax Foundation estimates that Washington would receive about $2.95 billion.

Additionally, the federal government would make direct payments to certain local governments from the amount reserved for those localities’ states. Counties and cities with populations of at least 500,000 would be eligible. In Washington, this includes King County, Pierce County, Snohomish County, Spokane County, and Seattle. The table below shows my rough calculation of how much could go to these jurisdictions under the bill.

Under the bill, governments may only use these funds for “necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency” from March 1, 2020 to Dec. 30, 2020. Additionally, they may only be used for costs that were not accounted for in the most recently approved state or local budget.

That means that these federal funds would be in addition to the $200 million that has been appropriated from Washington’s rainy day fund in response to COVID-19 (even though EHB 2965 states that federal funds must be used first, if available, and that any federal reimbursements must be deposited in the rainy day fund).